What happened? Gulf heirs are steering centuries-old fortunes into crypto and hedge funds.
The next generation of Gulf family-office heirs, like the Kanoo twins, have started allocating parts of their inheritance to cryptocurrencies and hedge funds instead of sticking mainly to real estate and local businesses. Early moves — including a family office Bitcoin bet in 2020 that was later sold for a profit — have encouraged more digital-asset and hedge-fund structures. Some heirs are now launching crypto firms and pushing for tokenized assets and diversified portfolios across Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Who does this affect? Younger heirs, family offices, private banks, hedge funds and crypto players in the Gulf.
This shift mainly impacts Gulf family offices and the younger family members who are taking control of investment decisions while sometimes clashing with older, more conservative relatives. Private banks and global hedge funds are racing to capture this business, and smaller hedge funds can see meaningful inflows from $5 million-plus allocations. Exchanges, service providers, and regulators in the UAE and Abu Dhabi also feel the effects as they court tokenization and stablecoin deals.
Why does this matter? It redirects big pools of capital into crypto and alternative funds, changing regional market dynamics.
Fresh allocations from wealthy Gulf families boost liquidity and legitimacy for crypto, tokenized real estate and hedge-fund strategies, making these markets more attractive to global managers. State-backed and large private investments can accelerate infrastructure and product development in the UAE, drawing more international players and capital to the region. Over time, this reallocation could shift asset prices, create new funding channels for smaller funds, and reshape how regional wealth is deployed across risk and innovation cycles.